Metascore
80

Generally favorable reviews - based on 36 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 28 out of 36
  2. Negative: 0 out of 36
  1. Nov 4, 2014
    73
    This game looks new, but behind that pretty face you will find the exact same game as last year. It does have an improved scouting system which makes this a solid football management sim, but we are not a fan of the odd design choices.
  2. Nov 19, 2014
    70
    Football Manager 15 once again offers a realistic approach in modern football but the messy AI and the clumsy match engine fail to deliver a flawless match- day experience. UI and scouting improvements are a step on the right direction, but the countless interviews and press conferences may tire the player.
  3. Nov 17, 2014
    70
    This is still a great soccer simulation, but it clearly needs something new and fresh it wants to keep its audience interested.
  4. Nov 5, 2014
    70
    This game renews itself in an odd way: the interface, which made a lot of progress in the last few years, has gotten a few illogical changes which feel like a few steps back. That being said, there is no better football management game on the market right now.
  5. 70
    A far less ambitious sequel than the last two years and most of the headline changes are negative, especially changing your manager into a role-playing character.
  6. Feb 26, 2015
    65
    Are you ready to shell out for a pricey graphics update? Because as a simulator, Football Manager did not mature at all.
  7. Nov 6, 2014
    61
    For existing fans there aren’t a lot of compelling reasons to upgrade from last year’s edition, unless you’re really nostalgic for the Graham Taylor approach to football.
  8. Nov 4, 2014
    60
    We're left with a game whose main improvements are all disappointments. And yet I'd still I'd put money on me pouring hundreds of hours into it. That's Football Manager. I'm sure that once a few patches have been released and a few things have been tweaked I'll discover that magic again. I just expect it might be a little bit harder to find than last year.
User Score
6.2

Mixed or average reviews- based on 180 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 88 out of 180
  2. Negative: 51 out of 180
  1. Nov 9, 2014
    4
    I reviewed 2014 (which was one of the most helpful user reviews) and i just had to review this years version too.

    This years version offers
    I reviewed 2014 (which was one of the most helpful user reviews) and i just had to review this years version too.

    This years version offers nothing new but some UPDATED things such as the interface and a update to the scouting system which i really do like, the sidebar is great and helps tidy up the interface and the scouting is much more interesting because players take more time to be fully scouting, like last years version you could hire a 20/20 scout and the player would be scouted almost instantly but now when a player is scouted the stats are ranged for example a players stats could be 12-16 but the more you scout the player the more accurate the scout report will be, some players won't like this system but i find it more realistic.

    The match engine is slightly improved by the way it looks and feels, they have added more animations to the players and the stadiums have had a bit of a face lift, they have also changed the lighting which is pretty poor because you can just about see the football depending on the time of day the match is taking place. The biggest issues right now with the ME is that every goal you concede will be from a cross or corner which leaves me very frustrated because its nothing to do with your team or tactic, it happens every game you play in you will always concede from a cross/corner and has to be an issue with the game itself which I'm sure they will hotfix or fix in a patch but this is just taking the fun out the game because no matter what you do or try to stop it happening it will always happen. Another issue players are complaining about and this is happening to me too is the amount of players that will get injured either in a match or in training, I'm currently halfway through my season and have always had at least 7 players out with injuries since the start of the season,

    Since FM 2013 the game gets released with issues and bugs that ruin the game, sure they get fixed in patches but last years one took 3 months to sort out before the game became enjoyable to play and i get the feeling that with the cross/corner goals and injury problem it will take them 3 months to sort this one out too.

    IN SHORT:
    This years version offers nothing new or any reason to updated from last years version apart from a updated interface and a updated player database, Wait for a fix on the problems this version has or stick to FM 2014
    Full Review »
  2. Nov 9, 2014
    1
    well i give this game 1 cuz i knew some one will give this **** a 10
    by all mean this game not 1 but around 5-6 .
    I just cant belive how
    well i give this game 1 cuz i knew some one will give this **** a 10
    by all mean this game not 1 but around 5-6 .
    I just cant belive how they can make this game became less fun every years
    i just skip 2013,2014 cuz i see nothing new and alot of user say same story how bad this game were
    and in this 2015 i take a shot cuz feel like new animation in me but lord it suck especial Gk wtf with this
    **** GK too many dump goal and i think defender still **** like 2013,2014 3 defender cant stop other team header when he just only one in front of goal and he not even good ST

    and why god like winger still in this game after 3 years? every winger is like robben with ozil pass skill
    some time they sure suck but when they play good it just so ridiculous some it just 3rd division player
    who can out run my 25m. defender all game with 13 pace

    so i guess it will end up like 2013,2014 just wait for a hundred patch and game still **** up
    they will give up and move on to 2016 left this crap behide

    cant belive i'm dump enough for buy this game it not even worth pirate waste of time and electric bill
    it just make you frustration all day stay away from it only gamer who dont knew how real football play
    think this game it good

    sry for my bad eng
    Full Review »
  3. Nov 29, 2014
    3
    In Angry Joes words:"They **** it up!!!".Let me explain why i think with FM2015 this series is dead:

    First of all, i have technical
    In Angry Joes words:"They **** it up!!!".Let me explain why i think with FM2015 this series is dead:

    First of all, i have technical issues.While modern FPS or RTS run just fine this piece of **** slows down every now and then.No problem in the 3D match, but in every menu.For example i want to switch between players, the screen freezes for a short time.This is NOT a problem with my setup, like i said, other games run just fine.Im sure its a bug, but i dont care, its there and its not really fun when you need 1 minute for small things what would normally take 20 seconds.For that ill substract 1 point.

    Lets look into the "new" features:

    New interface:This interface is not new, its back.Why did they changed it anyway?Was one of my main critic points for the series.But still, the interface is bad.You need to search hours for things in this poorly designed wannabe interface.Look, the game is basically the same im terms of the features like....say FM2012.But its so hard to find your way.Poor job!

    TRaining:Wow, its gettin worse every year.I know **** about what is happening.Why?There is no real indicator when your training is too hard.Of course, youll see it when hundreds of injurys happen but thats a bit late, right?In my savegame i tried to use the happiness of my players as indicator,You can find that in the training section.Arround 90% of my squad is happy, rest content.Results after 2 months of preseason and training:NEARLY 20 INJURED PLAYERS!!!WTF??!!??Im playing the series since FM2008, injurys where always a problem.But i could tweak my training with a slider.A tried my settings for 6 months or so, less injurys, you knew that was the "sweet spot".Now you dont have a slider, just basic categories like "hard".WTF?Where is the satisfaction that this is MY training?Many other things are gone too.No more different **** and so on.Dumbed down, no fun,

    Matchengine and tactics:Oh boy, this is what destroys this game completely.Whatever this game is about, its not football.The developer tied everything on the pitch to "roles".While in previous games this was something like a basic suggestion you could always tweak this is gone.You want a player to play in a specific role and SI things "in this role a players will always dribble" you cant cancel that.WTF??Im the coach, right?So you can look through aaaaaallll the roles in hope you find that combination that you want is there.For me, it was there, after 30 minutes of searching, great.Wastin my time, no fun.The matchengine is a joke too.You can read other reviews, i wont repeat what they write here, its true.What they are missing in my opinion is that AI sometimes will not react at all or the AI will choose the wrong player for the action!!!Some examples:My team got a penalty awarded.The kicker shoots, hits the woodwork, the ball rolls in slowmo to his **** feed.What happened?He forgot to react!!!!While he was just standin there with no reaction the defenders where able to clear the ball.Other example:3 defensive players, a long ball from the opposition, 2 of my players just standing there and the third, the slowest player in the team with the most distance to cover from his position had to make the run.Reasult:A goal for the opposition, first shot, 1:0.No fun at all!!Sometimes the players will ignore you orders, in my case that broke my gameplan completly.My game is slow paced and relies on retain possesion of the ball.My GK is ordered to distribute short balls to the defenders.For the 20 games i played he kicked most of the ball in the other half.Many balls lost that way, no fun.This engine is broken!

    Visuals:Im sorry, i know there are so many fans that say "its not about visuals in a manager".Youre wrong, its nearly 2015 and this piece of **** looks worse then the fifal manager 5 years ago.No good presentation, no real, close-up celebration of goals, no visual reaction when a player is fouled.

    Something in general:This series is dead.SI is a lazy company because they know that there is no competition.There is no progress in the series since 2012, more steps backwards.Please stop to buy this **** and please stop to blame everybody with legit critic he knows nothing about the game.If its so hard to learn FM than the developers done a terrible job in the first place.

    Final verdict:Better than 2013 or 2014 but still a bad game.FM2012 is still the best experience and thats what makes me sad!I would give this game a 4, but like i said, technical issues, -1 point.Dont buy it, even on a discount, its not worth your money.I hope they close this developer soon.
    Full Review »